Category: Politics
Chinese Scholars: BRICS Is All About Confronting the West
Many Chinese scholars have weighed in on this week’s BRICS summit, and the framing of the discussion on Chinese-language platforms is revealing. Commentators tend to see the bloc's importance as mostly lying in how it directly confronts Western global primacy. This ...
Europe Needs a Reality Check to Remain Relevant in a Multipolar World
By Lukas Fiala The recent military coup in Niger was widely interpreted as the latest blow in a series of setbacks for Europe in Africa. After French disengagement yielded space to Russian mercenaries across the Sahel, it’s hard not to see the ...
WEEK IN REVIEW: Chinese Contractors Won Nearly a Third of Construction Projects in Africa in 2022, Four Times More Than Western Firms
Chinese contractors won nearly a third of all construction projects in Africa last year, four times more than Western firms, according to a new study by the Hinrich Foundation. These findings mark a sharp reversal from the 1990s when U.S. and European firms won 85% of infrastructure contracts.
South Asian Leaders Gather in Kunming for China-South Asia Expo
Leaders from South Asian countries gathered in the southwest Chinese city of Kunming for the seventh China-South Asia Expo. It was an occasion for Chinese leaders to emphasize both trade and political ties. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told the guests that ...
Graph of the Day: Comparing U.S. and China’s Investment Clout in Southeast Asia
A recent article in Nikkei Asia provided a fascinating deep dive comparing China and the United States' influence in key Southeast Asian economies. It shows that while the U.S. has leaned into expanding its diplomatic engagement, Chinese economic ties in the region present a significant counterweight.
No Breakthroughs But Lots of Good Vibes After Two Days of Chinese, Indian Border Talks
Chinese and Indian military commanders both pledged to resolve their long-running border dispute "in an expeditious manner" following two days of talks aimed at defusing tensions along their 2,100km contested boundary in the Himalayas. Although no major breakthroughs were ...
Currencies, Old and New, Set to Top Agenda at Next Week’s BRICS Summit in Johannesburg
The idea of creating a brand new currency under the auspices of the BRICS countries is "ridiculous," according to the former Goldman Sachs economist who coined the acronym for the five countries. Jim O'Neil echoed the sentiments of a number of ...
India-China Border Talks Resume, Raising Hopes of a Xi-Modi Meeting
China and India held joint talks about their contested border a week before President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will both attend the BRICS summit in Johannesburg. Xi will also travel to New Delhi for G20 meetings next month. Observers see the meetings as a signal of a ...
As Tensions Between China and the Philippines Surge, Wang Yi Calls on a Few Old Friends in Southeast Asia
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi made a quick sprint through Southeast Asia over the weekend as part of a three-nation tour of Malaysia, Singapore, and Cambodia. Wang met with the prime ministers in the three countries in what appeared to be ...
China and the Philippines Warn Each Other Not to Push South China Sea Confrontation Too Far… Or Else
Tensions between China and the Philippines steadily worsened over the weekend as both sides attacked the other for instigating the latest confrontation in their disputed waters in the South China Sea. In Manila, Armed Forces chief General Romeo Brawner said the China ...
The China-Mediterranean Observer: Amid a Surge of Palestinian-Israeli Violence, Chinese Optimism About Its Role in the Peace Process Fades
June was a relatively uneventful month for Chinese commentators and journalists covering developments in Sino-Mediterranean relations. Among the few events that garnered significant media attention was the state visit by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to Beijing. In line with the ...
Is Myanmar a Good Testing Ground for How Far India Will Go to Counter China’s Influence?
By Saniya Kulkarni There have been developments in the China-Myanmar relationship since the first visit of former Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to Bagan following the coup in 2021. When we last wrote of this visit, Chinese support of the military ...







